The purpose of this project is development of a comprehensive framework for literacy, for students with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities. Project components are integrated and accessible across levels of student functioning and age. The three project curricular components are: visual literacy instruction, sight word instruction, and phonics instruction. The contents within each component and the connections among components will enable a teacher and IEP committee to select an appropriate entry point for students of any age and at a wide range of functioning levels. This accessibility will allow accommodations for literacy instruction for the elementary or secondary student from the level of learning to identify persons in pictures through phonically decoding connected environmental text.

A collaboration with the Department of Criminal Justice, this project provides financial support to doctoral-level students concentrating in juvenile justice special education beginning in 2006. The emphasis of the project is on increasing high-quality research, instruction, and service in juvenile justice special education. This project is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education.